“India to Ensure Rich Nations Pay More for Climate Debt”: Javadekar

Environment Minister’s Statement at Cop-21 in Paris


India’s minister for environment, forests and climate change, Shri Javadekar, reiterated its stand of Common But Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDR) on carbon space while making a statement on the completion of The Ad Hoc Working Group on the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action (ADP) process at Paris and on the eve of the start of high-level segment of Conference of Parties (COP) 21 .

Shri Javadekar said that the principle of CBDR has to be respected and rich countries due to their consumerist lifestyle of high carbon footprint in the past has to pay back inform of higher responsibilities. He said that India has to keep in mind the aspirations of its 1.27 billion i.e. 127 crore people to develop.
He said that “We are at this time midway on our journey to reach a new climate agreement, but substance-wise, we are not midway, but sometimes at crossroads. India is ready and committed to work with French Presidency which has done a monumental job over the last one year to build political momentum. India is also determined not to make Paris Summit like past summits where we all returned home with false optimism and fictitious hopes.


For India it is a question of present and future lives of our 1.27 billion people with aspirations to develop. We will not let this meeting fail to reach its objectives. India is here to ensure that seminal principle of Common But Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDR) is respected, and India is here to ensure that Rich countries pay back their debt for overdraft that they have drawn on the carbon space. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is a global climate constitution. It is fundamental. Any attempt to rewrite or to overwrite will not be acceptable to anybody. Our collective decision should be based on science, CBDR and collective conscience.”